More Coverage of the 2017 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Election

Coverage of the recent Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics election continues — this time in VICE Munchies.

Highlights:

* “According to the Wall Street Journal, AND has accepted millions of dollars from food and drink companies. Only in 2015, under mounting pressure from AND members and several advocacy groups, did Coca-Cola choose to terminate its sponsorship with the Academy; PepsiCo followed suit in 2016.”

* “Michele Simon, a public health lawyer and the author of a 2015 report that looked into the pervasiveness of industry ties among nutrition scientists, told MUNCHIES: “[AND] didn’t change their policy to keep Coke out—and that’s a very important distinction. The Academy gave some lip service to concerns that were raised and made some changes like setting up a committee, but I haven’t seen any substantive change come out from them aside from rearranging some deck chairs.”

* “A spokesperson for AND provided MUNCHIES with the following statement: “The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ 2017 national election was conducted in exactly the same manner as previous years’ elections. The Academy is committed to transparency and requires all candidates to provide their employment history, which is made public on the Academy’s website prior to elections. Candidates on the ballot fully disclose business relationships and clients on their websites for anyone to examine.”

* “Food policy expert Marion Nestle says that the problem of industry ties in nutrition is, in fact, endemic: “Many dietitians work for food companies. Many others think that working for food companies is a reasonable thing to do (and pays better than hospitals do). They do not recognize the inherent conflict, as most people who take industry funding do not.” The bottom line? “If you are paid by a company, you are unlikely to criticize its products or advise others not to consume them. That’s a conflict of interest,” Nestle told MUNCHIES.”

* “Kaylan Crowther, a nutritionist who is a member of AND, told MUNCHIES she believes that Cochran’s loss of the election is indicative that members of AND have had enough of old-style, secret affiliations with Big Food: “The recent election for AND president-elect Mary Russell showed that dietitians want change and professional integrity, not more food-industry insiders. In the future, this lack of transparency could be avoided by simply requiring candidates to disclose their full employment history, rather than allowing them to cherry pick.”

* “Andy Bellatti, a Las Vegas-based nutritionist who is the strategic director and co-founder of Dietitians for Professional Integrity, told MUNCHIES that his group “took a wait-and-see approach to this election.” Still, he says, “The Academy appears to view connections to industry as a positive thing. We need to get rid of this mentality.”

* “First, he says, AND must tighten up its ethics guidelines, including those that apply to paid social media posts. Also, he explains, the idea that sitting down with the corporate lobby and educating them on good nutrition is useless. What’s more, “I would say that there was some stifling or censoring that occurred during this election. There have definitely been many dietitians who have told me they are afraid to speak out because of repercussions.”

* “Corporations will likely always play a role in American nutrition given that our food is largely produced by corporations. As Simon points out, “It’s not to say that there’s no role for industry interaction. You can work with the industry without them having a soda fountain at your annual trade show.”

* “Although some of the experts we spoke with see Cochran’s loss of the election as a signal that AND’s members are done with corporate-affiliated leaders—and are less that pleased with the organization’s lack of transparency—the relationship between the nation’s largest organization of nutritionists and Big Food is still a work in progress.”

Footer

Subscribe to receive our quarterly newsletter and other breaking news!

Recent Posts

Dear DFPI Supporters,
Since February of 2013, we at Dietitians For Professional Integrity have been a voice for uplifting the registered dietitian credential at a time when corporate influences - both overt and covert Read More

Good read from New York Times on how highly processed foods (and the ingredients in many of them) can negatively impact health by creating an imbalance in the gut microbiome. This is the future of nutrition. The fact Read More